Core doula skills shape the whole room, not your bag of tricks.

You do not build strong support by collecting more tools. You build it through presence, attunement, communication, and timing, in real time, with real clients.

These skills show up when things feel tense. When plans change. When your client looks at you for answers you cannot give. When the room speeds up and you feel your own nervous system kick up.

They grow through experience, reflection, and repetition. You notice what you do when you feel unsure. You practice staying grounded. You say less, listen more, and choose your moments. Over time, you stop scrambling and start leading with calm.

This conversation gives you a simple way to remember the four doula pillars, PACT, and how to use them in birth and postpartum. It also gives you a small, realistic practice plan so you can train one skill at a time instead of trying to fix everything at once.

This episode is for doulas who want to feel more confident, support clearer decision-making, and help keep your cliens grounded in the moments that matter most.

Core doula skills shape the whole room, not your bag of tricks.

You do not build strong support by collecting more tools. You build it through presence, attunement, communication, and timing, in real time, with real clients.

These skills show up when things feel tense. When plans change. When your client looks at you for answers you cannot give. When the room speeds up and you feel your own nervous system kick up.

They grow through experience, reflection, and repetition. You notice what you do when you feel unsure. You practice staying grounded. You say less, listen more, and choose your moments. Over time, you stop scrambling and start leading with calm.

This conversation gives you a simple way to remember the four doula pillars, PACT, and how to use them in birth and postpartum. It also gives you a small, realistic practice plan so you can train one skill at a time instead of trying to fix everything at once.

This episode is for doulas who want to feel more confident, support clearer decision-making, and help keep your cliens grounded in the moments that matter most.

Professional Identity shapes how clients experience you, especially when things get hard. It shows up under pressure. In the room. In the moments you do not get to rehearse.

This conversation is not about branding or personality. It is about how you practice.

In this episode, we talk through:

• Why skill alone does not create trust
• How stress reveals your default way of working
• Four common practice anchors doulas lean into
• What happens when strengths over-express
• How unprocessed birth or postpartum medical trauma can quietly shape your work
• Why regulation and boundaries matter for both you and your clients

Along the way, you will be invited to reflect on:

• What you value as a professional
• How you support clients in real situations
• How you communicate when pressure is high
• Where your default helps and where it gets in the way

This episode is for doulas who want their Professional Identity to feel steady and intentional. Not performative. Not reactive.

If this conversation stays with you, leave a review so others can find it.

Confidence grows through action, not intention.

Did you know that confidence as a process? You do not wake up with it. You build it by doing the work, taking a step of faith, and sometimes missing the mark.

Confidence forms through experience, reflection, and repetition.

It develops when you act, before you feel certain. Mistakes strengthen your judgment, and real growth happens when you keep showing up even after things do not go as planned.

Waiting to feel confident keeps you stuck. Moving forward creates the confidence you are looking for.

This conversation is for doulas who want to trust themselves more, take meaningful action, and grow into their work through practice rather than perfection.

Readiness Is Not a Feeling

In this episode, we talk about readiness and why waiting to feel confident keeps so many doulas stuck.

Readiness is not a feeling. It is an action.

We break down why readiness is built through experience, not certainty, and why fear does not mean you are unprepared.

You'll hear why mentorship alone does not create confidence, how real growth happens through doing, and what readiness actually looks like in birth, postpartum, education, and lactation support.

If you have ever thought, "When I feel ready, I'll take the first step," this episode is for you.

Doulas of the Roundtable wraps up season seven with a look back and a clear look ahead.

In this episode, you hear our top ten most listened to episodes of all time and why these conversations continue to matter to doulas at every stage of practice.

We also share an important update about the podcast. Eva will be stepping away from the show. We want to take a moment and honor Eva's voice, insight, and role in shaping the podcast into what it is today!

Moving forward, Angela will continue as the solo host of Doulas of the Roundtable. The focus remains the same. Honest conversations. Evidence based discussion. Real talk about the work, the business, and the responsibility doulas carry.

If you have listened from the beginning or joined recently, this episode brings closure, clarity, and direction for what comes next.

Thank you for being part of this community and for helping this podcast grow season after season.

Enjoy one of our most popular episodes to date.

What do you wish you knew before becoming a doula?

This is a question that we see frequently from those considering birth work or those who have just entered the field. Working with growing families is the part of the work that most have at least a loose idea about. But when I think about what I wish I knew it's the practicalities that many often fail to consider.

Living the on-call life. Pacing yourself when supporting families. What self-care actually looks like. These are just a few things that come immediately to mind as experienced birth workers.

Then there are other things that many may not consider. Running a business. For those who are just getting started, client management is also often overlooked. But when you get busy, systems are essential to keep track of clients, what they need, what services they've hired you to provide, and what their preferences and needs are.

Come join us as we discuss what we wish we'd known before becoming doulas!

Many doulas feel pressure to bring a large bag of tools to each birth or postpartum shift. This pressure often leads to checklists and expectations.

As a result, doulas may focus on doing instead of connection. This shift can weaken the attunement and emotional connection that shape strong doula support.

True anticipation of client needs does not come from tools. Instead, it grows from presence and awareness. Doulas can watch body language, listen to tone, and notice small shifts in comfort. These skills help clients feel seen and supported rather than managed.

Rigid expectations can also create stress for doulas. When the goal becomes using everything in your bag, you may miss the client's actual needs. Every client experience is different. Every coping style is unique. Responding in the moment matters more than any object you carry.

This approach strengthens emotional safety and builds trust. It also helps doulas stay grounded, flexible, and connected throughout the entire experience.

Join us for a thoughtful discussion on anticipating client needs with intention, presence, and professionalism while keeping relationship-based care at the center.

Informed consent is one of the most essential and often misunderstood aspects of pregnancy and birth care. To help unpack this important topic, we are joined by Hillary, better known as The Pregnancy Nurse®.*

Hillary brings nearly two decades of experience as a labor and delivery nurse and has been supporting families in clinical settings since 1997. She has guided thousands of birthing parents in person and reached millions more online through her evidence-based education and compassionate approach. Her mission is to help families feel informed, empowered, and confident as they prepare for birth.

Together, we explore what informed consent truly means in practice, how doulas can help clients understand their rights, and the importance of collaboration with medical teams. We also discuss how informed consent differs from implied consent, and what true autonomy looks like in the birth space.

Join us for a thoughtful and informative discussion that will deepen your understanding of informed consent and strengthen your ability to support clients through empowered decision-making.

Supporting family and friends as a doula can be both rewarding and complex. The personal connection you share makes it easy to overstep boundaries, give unsolicited advice, or slip out of your professional role.

Maintaining the balance between being a loved one and being a doula requires awareness, restraint, and compassion. It means stepping back from the more intimate role you usually play and intentionally working within the doula's scope of practice.

In this episode, we talk about how to navigate these blurred lines while honoring the unique journey of the people closest to us. Just as we do with our clients, we must offer care, support, and guidance without judgment or assumption.

Join us for a thoughtful conversation on how to serve with integrity, maintain boundaries, and show up professionally when supporting those you love.